Almost two months after Rosie O’Donnell’s fiery exit, show creator Barbara Walters made the major announcement that Whoopi would be joining Barbara, Joy Behar, and then host Elisabeth Hasselbeck as the moderator when Season 11 kicked off in September 2007. After greeting the studio audience, she sat in the moderator’s chair and had a mini-conversation with her future co-hosts. From perfectly impersonating her mother when she heard the news to her hysterical impersonation of Marlene Dietrich singing “Take Me Out of the Ball Game,” this was a strong indication of the things to come.

One of Whoopi’s most beloved films is Sister Act and its sequel, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Many fans of the franchise were ecstatic to learn that Whoopi would help bring the iconic film franchise to both the West End and Broadway. Whoopi advised the audience that while this is not the same story as the 1992 film or not feature most of the Motown music that was included on the soundtrack, she announced that Broadway and film veteran Alan Menken created the score for the production and that there would an incredible actress who portrayed the iconic Deloris Van Cartier, which was later revealed to be Tony-winning actress Patina Miller. To complete the celebration, nuns who were in the audience victoriously sang a spirited “Hallelujah.”

The world was in shock when superstar Michael Jackson passed away suddenly in 2009. Just days before the King of Pop’s massive memorial service at the Staples Center, New York Congressman Peter King openly bashed the late entertainment icon for his supposed perverted past. Whoopi, who was a longtime friend of the King of Pop, defended her friend and talked about when the “Billie Jean” singer entered her life. At the end of the segment, she also confronted Congressman King, who asked: “Who would leave their child with Michael Jackson?” Whoopi defiantly answered that she left her child with the King of Pop.

Two months later, Whoopi mourned another close friend on The View. That friend was actor-dancer Patrick Swayze. She revealed that Patrick Swayze passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer. While it was a sad occasion, Whoopi bared her soul to the audience and admitted that without Patrick Swayze’s insistence that there would be no have been no Ghost and she would not have received her Oscar. Also, it was hysterical to learn the behind the scenes antics that Patrick pulled on Whoopi including mooning her on set.

Many Disney fans associate Whoopi Goldberg with The Lion King as she voiced the sassy and short-tempered Shenzi the Hyena. But in 2010, Whoopi had a one night only performance as part of the cast of the Broadway production of The Lion King. She played several different characters including Rafiki and Shenzi as well as participated in the opening number, “Circle of Life.” The audience got to see Whoopi’s whirlwind of rehearsals as she learned the mechanics, choreography, and musical numbers of the celebrated Broadway production.

One Hot Topic that had Whoopi devolve into hysterical laughter happened during the release of Man of Steel. Whoopi could not contain her amusement when she revealed that the Warner Bros. marketing team gave pastors talking points about the similarities between Jesus Christ and Superman. While both former co-hosts Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Sherri Shepherd tried to defend this idea, Whoopi could not stop laughing.

Whoopi, Billy Crystal, and Robin Williams are one of the most recognized comedy trios of all-time. From Comic Relief to Hollywood Squares, this trio singlehandedly is responsible for entertaining three generations with their films, TV specials, comedy records, Broadway shows, and cartoons. On August 11, 2014, the world was shocked by Robin Williams’ suicide. During the View: Season 18 premiere week, fans were treated to an exclusive interview between the two comedy icons as they honored their friend and brother in one of the season’s moving segments.

Eight years after Whoopi announced the Sister Act musical, Whoopi put on a nun costume but not to portray Deloris van Cartier. She surprised her lookalike, Sister Gertrude, and the Order of the Franciscan Handmaids of the Most Pure Heart of Mary with a $10,000 donation from RetailMeNot, a year’s worth of gas, and a new Toyota van!

Last season, The View celebrated their twentieth anniversary season at Walt Disney World. The Disney aficionado surprised guests all across the Magic Kingdom. From welcoming guests to the Haunted Mansion to leading a sing along at the Enchanted Tiki Room, seeing the fans light up whenever the EGOT winner was priceless, and I honestly believe that it was one of The View’s best moments at any Disney Parks location.

Over The View’s 20th anniversary season, the ABC talk show honored countless of people who have done good deeds across the country. Of all the people that the show honored, one person that stood out in the crowd was United States Navy veteran, Timothy Birckhead. Birckhead, who was diagnosed with hereditary neuropathy with liability to pressure palsies (HNPP), received a house from the non-profit Homes For Our Troops. Whoopi, Sara Haines, and the entire View production team were there every step of the way with the Birckhead Family and were also there with the reveal of their new house in Mullica Hill, New Jersey. This reveal was one of the emotional moments in the show’s history, but also the addition of NBA superstar Stephen Curry walking out of Timothy’s new bathroom was the icing on the cake.

My Whoopi Story (2017)

I have had the privilege of being in The View studio audience three times in my life. All three times that I visited the show, Whoopi held court with a variety of co-hosts including Joy, Rosie O, Sara, Nicolle Wallace, Rosie Perez, Paula Faris, Jedediah Bila, and Sunny Hostin. During my recent visit to the show on July 11, I had the chance to take a part of the show’s audience Q&A session with the co-hosts. I asked Sunny, Sara, and Jedediah the lessons that they learned from their first year as permanent co-hosts. As I was asking them my question, Whoopi leaned in and we exchanged eye contact. My heart sang as I asked her, “Whoopi, how are you?” In true Whoopi fashion, she replied, “I’m still here, babe!” To interact with one of my all-time favorite performers just three weeks after I moved from Overland Park, Kansas to the Big Apple in hopes to work in the media gave me an extra boost of confidence that I needed to continue on my journey.

Thank you for all that you do, Whoopi, Jake’s Take hopes that you, Joy, Sara, Paula, Sunny, and Jedediah have a successful 21st season!

I do not own any clips that are featured in the article. They belong to ABC & Lincoln Square Productions.